Experts

An expert, more generally, is a person with extensive knowledge or ability based on research, experience, or occupation and in a particular area of study. Experts are called in for advice on their respective subject, but they do not always agree on the particulars of a field of study.

We love our experts and tend to buy into what they tell us. After all, they do know more about a particular subject than we do, so arguing would be pointless. That is, until the experts disagree amongst themselves. Then what? The fact is, experts are people like you and me that have studied a particular field for long enough to know more than most. How that knowledge is used, what conclusions are drawn from it, vary from expert to expert. So which expert should you believe? Most of us make that choice based on how close the expert's world view matches our own. We align with experts that agree with us. What we are doing in our quest for knowledge is finding trusted sources that help explain what our senses are telling us. It's ok to align yourself with hand picked experts that agree with you, because it's what we do, and there's good reason to do it. Aligning yourself with experts that agree with you gets you closer to understanding what your observations and senses tell you is true. Take climate change and the controversies surrounding it, a subject near and dear to my heart. If you believe climate change is a threat because you observe changes like glaciers melting are real, as I do, you align yourself with experts who support that view. Of course it's easy to find enough experts that can prove the opposite, like unusual cold in places normally warm. When it comes to stereo equipment and how electronics and cables make a difference, we can align ourselves with experts on either side. Never feel intimidated by those that wave their experts in your face as proof you're wrong. That's BS, because the experts themselves don't agree.